Ching’s Chinese Food in Minutes. Ching-He Huang

are stir-fried. It is then returned to the wok for the final mixing with seasoning. I find that you don’t always have to cook in this way (as recipes vary), and there are some dishes where you can add the meat/protein after the garlic, ginger and chillies and then, once they start to cook, you can add the rest of the ingredients; this helps to ensure the meat/protein is not overly cooked.

      5 Adding cooked ingredients

      Cooked noodles or cooked rice can be added to the wok at the end of the cooking process and combined with the rest of the ingredients together with all the seasoning.

      Steaming

      Food cooked in a bamboo steamer takes on a subtle bamboo fragrance. This technique is a wonderful way of preparing a healthy meal; it’s fast and fun, too. You can also serve your food in the steamer, with the lid on; this helps to keep the food warm for longer.

      1 Make sure the wok is stable

      If you are cooking on a gas stove, invest in a wok rest; this helps to keep the wok secure.

      2 Filling the wok with water

      Fill the wok half full with water and place the bamboo steamer over the top, making sure the water in the wok does not touch the base of the steamer. Depending on the recipe, either place the food to be steamed directly in the steamer or on a heatproof plate, bowl or rack that fits inside the steamer, raised above the water. Put the lid on and steam. If necessary, top up the wok with more boiling water as the food cooks.

      3 Size of the bamboo steamer

      Bamboo steamers vary in size, so make sure that you buy one that sits snugly across the wok and will not touch the water when this is added. For those who love to cook a feast, you can pile the steamers on as high as you want (although you will need a powerful flame that can produce enough steam to reach the highest steamer; I would say up to three piled high should be okay).

      4 A final tip

      Before you attempt to take the lid off the steamer, make sure that you always turn the flame off under the wok. I have been impatient many times and have burnt my hands and arms in the hot steam.

      Deep-frying

      You might think this not a very healthy way of cooking, but if the oil is hot enough, once the food is dropped in it will cook at such a high temperature that the outside edges are almost ‘sealed’, not allowing the ingredient to absorb any more oil, and the high heat continues to cook the inside of the food.

      1 Make sure the wok is stable

      Again, if you are cooking on a gas stove, invest in a wok rest; this helps to keep the wok stable and secure—very important when deep-frying.

      2 Make sure the oil is hot enough

      To get the best results from deep-frying, make sure you use a deep-frying thermometer and follow the recommended temperature given in the recipe. If the oil is too cold, the food will take longer to cook and the result is oily food. If the temperature is too hot, the food will burn and will be undercooked on the inside. If you don’t have a thermometer, then you can use the ‘bread test’, which I refer to in my recipes. Be particularly careful when deep-frying in a wok—don’t overfill it, or leave it unattended.

      3 Adding and removing the food

      When lowering food into deep oil, I use a utensil called a ‘spider’. It is a web-like, woven steel mesh scooper that works well as a strainer. Use it also for lifting fried foods from the wok (draining much oil in the process) onto dishes lined with absorbent kitchen paper (again, to help drain excess oil). The ‘spider’ comes in different sizes and you should be able to find it in all good Chinese supermarkets and kitchen/cookware shops. It often has a handle made of bamboo.

      4 Golden rules when deep-frying

       Make sure the wok is stable, or use a wok stand.

       Do not over-fill the wok with oil—it should be less than half full, when there is less chance of bubbling and spilling over.

       Make sure the food is dry, as this prevents spitting.

       For best results, avoid re-using oil whenever possible.

       Use a large, long pair of bamboo chopsticks to help you turn food over if necessary (not plastic chopsticks, as they melt).

       Serve fried food immediately as it will start to lose its crunch and crispness. However, if unavoidable, keep the food hot in a preheated oven before serving.

       Other cooking utensils

      The following would also be useful to have in the kitchen:

      Wok cover

      Invest in a wok cover; this will allow you to stew, steam, boil and smoke food using your wok. It should have a small top handle to allow you to lift it off, and it should fit snug and firm on the wok.

      Wok brush

      This is a wooden brush with long hard bristles that is used with hot water to clean the wok. It’s not essential but can take the hard work out of cleaning.

      Chinese spatula /wooden spoon

      Traditionally, the metal spatula is used in the Chinese kitchen to allow you to manoeuvre the food and scoop it out of the wok. This is okay for seasoned woks, but you may end up scratching off the non-stick coating if you use a non-stick coated wok. I would suggest a wooden spoon as an alternative.

      Ladle

      The Chinese ladle is small and bowl-shaped to allow you to collect soups and sauces from the wok, but I use a normal ladle, and not necessarily made from carbon steel as they can rust easily. Mine is made from stainless steel.

      Chinese cleaver/good knife

      It is essential to invest in a good knife. I usually use a medium stainless steel chef’s knife that is made from one continuous piece of metal. However, I also have a stainless steel Chinese cleaver with a wooden handle. Cleavers are particularly useful for hacking meat with bones, such as ribs, chopping up chicken, or chopping through roast duck. They are also useful for slicing, shredding, dicing, mincing and mashing (by using the side of the blade and mashing the ingredient between the blade and the chopping board). Of course, you can use a food processor but I find it is good therapy to use the cleaver.

      Cutting board

      Choose a solid, large wooden chopping board and make sure you clean it well after use. I usually keep three different boards: one for meat, one for seafood, and one for fruit and vegetables.

       Soups & Starters